The answer to the question isn't simple.
Nothing stays in production forever. There are literally millions of products that have been produced and discontinued. S&W makes no exception to that rule. Gun models come and go. If they didn't, the companies would go broke carrying stock on guns that may never sell. It's simply supply and demand.
It doesn't make a gun good or bad. It's just a product of the times.
You got a S&W revolver for a great price. Enjoy it, shoot it and keep it clean. It'll last for generation yet to come.
You got it for an excellent price without any doubts. A deal that good may never cross your path again for a very long time.
There were common complaints with the long hard double action trigger pull, and the action "sticking." Also some reported timing issues.
These complaint aren't just with the model 438, they seem to occur over every handgun platform produced.
Long trigger pull is common to DAO handguns, period. Not just revolvers. Handguns have had this problem as long as they've been produced. Long triggers are what makes them function. Most gun makers have built these DAO guns with heavy triggers as a safety feature. A shooter is much less likely to have an AD if the trigger is at 8 Lbs or more.
I've never heard of the 438 having issues with "Sticking" Where that comes from I don't know.
I did a Google search, and none of the comments I've found discussed this problem.
Timing issues are problem that have plagued revolvers as well. S&W's seem to have fewer timing problems than most other brands. Timing is governed by the design of the lockworks. It's a common complaint of guns made all over the world. Colt has much more troubles with timing than any S&W I've heard of. Colt Pythons and Diamondbacks are well known to have timing issues, and they need to be checked regularly to keep them in good running order.
I don't claim to have all the answers, or know of every problem that a gun has suffered from, but the 438 isn't exempt from problems simply because it's made by S&W. It's just another handgun that's made for self defense, nothing more and nothing less. Good, bad, or indifferent, it was made for a specific reason, and discontinued for whatever reasons S&W decided on as well.
Regards,
Gearchecker
